The Era
by amaXdear
Summary: The cliche, overdone Marauders-meet-and-get-Sorted, with some extra fun on the train. Be warned: one little tiny curse.


**Disclaimer: I don't own the characters, the place, the ideas--hell, this story is so overdone I don't even own the plot. The only thing that's mine is the specific order of the words and the God-awful Sorting Hat song. Enjoy!**

* * *

"You've got your books?"

"Yes, Mum."

"Robes?"

"Yes, Mum."

"Wand?"

"Of course, Mum."

"Cauldron?"

"We're going to be late, Annie," Dad said, a little cross, checking his watch. "The Express leaves at ten o'clock exactly, and it pays to be there a mite bit earlier. Nearly missed the train, my first year."

"Oh, all right." Mum stepped forward and squeezed Remus as tight as she could. He hugged back a little bit, trying not to make her feel any worse. There were already tears in her eyes, and he wasn't exactly sure what emotions were behind them.

"I'll miss you, Mum, but I promise I'll write, okay?"

"Oh yes you will," she said fiercely, pulling away and holding Remus at shoulder-length. "If _anything_ comes up, anything at all, you go straight to the Owlery and write, you hear? And then go to Dumbledore."

"Nothing's going to happen, Mum," Remus said confidently. "I'll be fine."

"Good," she whispered, kissing his cheek. "We'll see you at Christmas. Good-bye Remus."

"Bye, Mum." He gave her one last hug because he knew she wanted one, and turned towards Dad. Mr. Lupin had a firm grip on his son's trunk--everything except his wand, which Remus had taken to carrying around with him. Safety first, constant vigilance and all that.

"Ready, Remus?"

"All set."

"It's not going to feel pleasant," he warned. "A bit like suffocating, but once you turn sixteen you'll be dying to Apparate everywhere--which of course won't happen because sixteen-year-olds who haven't passed their tests get splinched."

"Yeah, I know."

"All right, just making sure. Now, hold on tight and don't distract me."

"Got it." Remus took a firm grip on his father's elbow, and suddenly they were gone.

It _was_ quite uncomfortable, he thought, but it was over too soon for him to do more than grimace. Suddenly they were surrounded by a crowd of people, all of whom seemed to be making a good deal of noise. Remus opened his eyes to see hundreds of wizards and witches--some barely over three, looking at their older siblings with envy, others sending off their grandchildren--crowded onto the platform.

"Wow," he whispered.

"Look there--Hogwarts Express," Dad pointed. It was a huge, bright red train, sitting in the platform like a squat, steel snake, hissing steam at them.

"And everyone always takes the train? All the students?" Remus asked, bouncing ahead eagerly. His father reached out to snatch his elbow, just as Remus nearly collided with a very short blonde wizard who was leading four giggling girls--all his daughters, judging by their startlingly gold hair--towards the train.

"Careful, Remus, there's a lot of students and a lot of relatives here. Yes, everyone has to take the train. No one but the Headmaster really know where it is."

"Really? Why not?"

"Magical schools don't want to be bothered, so there are a large number of concealment spells on them. You can't find Hogwarts on a map, you can't take photos of it, you can't memorize the route, and I challenge you to even remember the scenery tomorrow morning, let alone the next few years."

"What about a map _of_ Hogwarts? Like one that doesn't show you where it is, just how to get around?"

Dad chuckled. "I don't think it'd be much use, Rem. The staircases like to move."

"The _staircases_--?"

"And the suits of armor, and the doors, and occasionally individual stairs."

Dad hefted the trunk onto the train and suddenly, inexplicably, Remus felt a flicker of nervousness. He tried to quash it, but a few sickening questions squirmed their way into his brain, and he couldn't help but voice a few.

"Dad, what if-- what if something goes wrong? Like-- like if the tree doesn't work the way Professor Dumbledore said it would and I get stuck in the middle of the grounds? Or if people try to stop me from leaving the common room? Or if no one likes me? If they think I'm a freak--"

"Hey!" Dad said sharply, resting a hand on Remus' shoulder. "We agreed we weren't going to use that word, remember? You promised Mum."

"Right. But if someone _else_--"

Dad knelt down a little bit and put both hands on Remus' shoulders, looking him straight in the eye. "Listen to me, Remus. Nothing is going to go wrong with the-- the plan, all right? Dumbledore's sorted everything out, and he's very rarely wrong. Nothing is more important to him than his students--you know many people wouldn't consider giving you this chance, and those people don't matter anymore. As long as the likes of Albus Dumbledore are on your side, you'll be okay. You understand that?"

Remus nodded.

"Good. Now, about the other students--they aren't going to know anything unless you tell them, Rem. The teachers wouldn't dare betray a confidence like that."

"But if they find out--"

"Then you'll find good friends who won't care. Don't forget, for 343 days a year you're just a good, smart kid, and that's all they'll see. People are going to like you, Rem. I'm sure of that." He smiled a warm, proud smile that evoked a grin from Remus too. Dad didn't smile all the time, but when he did, it was impossible not to smile back.

"All right."

"Good lad. All right, on the train."

Dad gave him a quick hug and helped him onto the train just as the whistle blew and a crush of late students pushed onto the train. Remus waved, but Dad was lost in the crowd within seconds. With the smallest of frowns, Remus turned into the train and started down the hallway as the train began to move, looking for a compartment.

_How does everyone know each other already?_ He wondered, amazed. At one point he stopped to peek into a compartment, and a crowd of girls who could only be first years broke away from their conversations and stared at him, breaking into giggles when he blushed and moved on.

After a while, a compartment door opened and two first years, a redheaded girl and a black-haired boy, both with expressions of extreme annoyance, stormed out. They slammed the door behind them. Remus looked after them curiously and slid open the door to find two boys his age laughing.

"Er-- does this mean you have space, then?" he asked, a little nervously. Was it a good sign when two people had just been chased off?

"Oh, go on," the boy with glasses said with a casual wave.

"Thanks." Remus lugged his trunk it, sliding the door closed with his foot. "Everywhere else is full, I've just been wandering the corridor…"

"Hey," the second boy said, somewhat suspiciously. "Don't I know you?"

"Probably not."

"I think I do. You a pureblood?"

"Oy, what's that for?" the other boy asked, clearly offended. "So what if he's not?"

"Don't get your knickers in a knot, I'm just trying to figure out where I know him from."

"So? That's not the kind of question you go around asking people, not unless you want them to think you're a Death--"

"My mum's Muggle-born," Remus interrupted, dropping into a seat across from the two. "And I really don't care about any of that rubbish. Purebloods who are too stupid to breed are going to be gone in a few decades, so what's the point in arguing about it?"

"Well said," the boy with glasses approved.

"Yeah, I like that-- mind if I write it down? My mum's gonna _hate_ me for that, I can't wait for her to send me a Howler--"

"Ollivander's!" Remus blurted out suddenly. The boy looked up.

"What?"

"Ollivander's-- that's where you know me from. We got our wands at the same time."

The boy leaned forward and made a big show of studying him, but Remus was confident in the identification. The same boy--Sirius Black--had come into the shop just as Remus was finishing. Remus' parents had been shopping elsewhere, and only come in after Sirius had finished waving half the wands in his shop, to his mother's annoyance. Mrs. Black had given Remus' mum a _very_ nasty look, and Sirius had made a point of introducing himself. After a minute, Sirius broke into a broad grin and sprang up, pulling Remus into a bear hug as if they were best friends.

"Blimey, Loopy, it is you! How was your summer, mate?"

"Loopy?" the other boy asked, clearly confused.

"Lupin," Remus corrected. "And we only said about ten words that day, and I don't remember giving anyone permission to call me Loopy. My name's Remus Lupin."

"I'm James," the other boy said, digging through his trunk. "And I've got food, you want some?"

"Why didn't you say so before?" Sirius demanded. "I'm starving! Although I think that Snivelly kid might've ruined my appetite… all grease and oil, that one."

"No arguments, and I just remembered now. Mum made me swear not to blow my pocket money on Cauldron Cakes, so she baked cookies instead… secret family recipe, I've got loads. Here." He pulled out two small bags of chocolate chip cookies and tossed them to Sirius and Remus. The chocolate chips kept changing color; some of them flickered between black and yellow, others blue and brown, some red and gold, and a few silver and green.

"Oh-- thanks, but I don't--"

Remus tried to hand them back, but James waved him away. "I can't eat all of them. First years aren't allowed to play Quidditch, so I'll be stuck with the fat until the summer and then of course Mum'll be stuffing me 24/7 and by the time we _can_ try out I'll be a fat lump who falls off his broom."

"James, mate, these all the House colors?" Sirius asked, inspecting a green and silver cookie.

"Yeah. Don't know who she's playing at, my whole family's been in Gryffindor."

"Hey, I thought we agreed that family wasn't part of the sorting?"

"Right. Here, you can eat all the Gryffindor ones for good luck, then. You know what House you'll be in?" James asked Remus, taking an enormous bite out of a Slytherin cookie. It hissed at him. "Sirius' mum wants him to be in Slytherin, but we've just agreed he's too non-evil." Remus shook his head, fingering a Ravenclaw cookie that cawed when he cracked it.

"Mum was in Hufflepuff and Dad was in Ravenclaw. Both of them reckon I'll be in the other's house, so I don't really know what's going to happen."

"Oh come on, you have to have _some_ idea," James probed. "It's just one of those things, you know? Like when you're little and your older brother gets his letter--"

"I'm an only child."

"Me too, I'm speaking figuratively--or when your parents first tell you about Hogwarts, the first thing that pops up is _What House am I going to be in?_"

"I don't know much about Hogwarts at all, actually," Remus admitted. James gasped and immediately launched into a detailed description of the different houses as well as famous members of those houses. Sirius kept eating, occasionally interrupting them with a particularly loud roar from the larger-sized Gryffindor cookies.

"…The Headmaster and the Headmistress this year are both from Gryffindor, so you know it's best. Plus Ravenclaws can be a little bit snooty sometimes and Hufflepuffs have a reputation for being a little useless, and there isn't a witch or wizard who ever went bad who wasn't in Slytherin. Sirius and I met this little greasy git earlier who wanted to be in Slytherin, but I don't think--"

Suddenly the door opened to reveal a small boy with a pointed nose and watery eyes.

"What d'you want?" Sirius grumbled.

"Sirius!" James rolled his eyes. "Be polite. What do you want, _sir_?"

"Excuse me, but do you mind if I sit in here?" the boy asked nervously. "My name's Peter Pettigrew--I spilled my Gobstones in the corridor and when I went back to my compartment, a bunch of older students had taken over it."

"You should have kicked them out!" James said indignantly, standing in a shower of cookie crumbs.

"Well yes, I was going to ask them to leave, but one of them was a prefect, and he said that first years have to give things up if a prefect asks them to--"

"Wait," Sirius said, eyes flashing. He practically sprang forward in his seat. "What house were they in?"

"Slytherin, I think. One of them was already in school robes, and Slytherin's colors are silver and green, right?"

"Yeah, that's right. Was there a girl in there with the prefect? About yea tall, blonde hair?"

"Er-- yes, I think so--"

"Did she look at you like you were a pile of dragon boogeys?"

"I-- er, I'm not--"

"THINK, MAN!" Sirius roared, making everyone in the compartment jump. It seemed to be a life or death situation.

"Yes, I-- I suppose so."

"Let's move," Sirius said darkly, striding out of the cabin. The remaining boys exchanged worried glances and then, as one, followed him. Sirius stalked down the hallway, pausing in front of the second-to-last door. 'Is this it?' he mouthed to Peter. He nodded. Sirius glanced through the window quickly, and stealthily slipped to the door next to it, gesturing wildly for the other three to huddle around him.

"All right, listen carefully," he hissed. "My cousin, my snobby pureblood gold-loving cousin, is sitting _right_ _there_ with her hands in some snobby pureblood gold-loving git's hair like he's her kitty cat, and I cannot pass up the opportunity, but I'm going to need back up. Who's with me?"

"I'm in," James said immediately.

"Good man," Sirius said gravely. "Remus?"

"My parents'll kill me if they get an owl before term starts saying I've got detention!"

"So, that's a yes?"

Remus sighed. He really would like to make friends… "Yes."

"Peter?" The boy was trembling in his trainers. "Come on, Pete, you are the key element," Sirius begged. "We're paying them back for stealing your compartment; if they don't know you're in on it, then I'm just her bratty kid cousin. With you, we're like Robin Hood and the Married Men."

"Merry," Remus corrected automatically.

"Get stuffed, you think my parents let me read Muggle fairy tales? Now, you in or out?"

"What happens tomorrow morning when they come practicing jinxes on me?"

"All right, everyone, hands in," James said firmly. They obliged, curious. "Repeat after me: I solemnly swear to defend those among me from the snobby pureblood gold-loving Slytherins in yonder compartment, on pain of Bat-Boogey hexes and Jelly-Legs Jinxes for the rest of my Hogwarts career."

Remus sighed. He would _really_ like to make friends. "Yes, all right."

And so, his fate was sealed.

(---)

"Yes, this is the one she was in," Peter said loudly.

"Great, thanks!" Sirius burst into the compartment and the Slytherins jumped. One girl, a blonde who was busy talking to and flirting outrageously with her boyfriend, paled. "CISSY!" Sirius yelled gleefully, throwing himself at her. Biting their lips, James and Remus snuck in behind him.

"It's me, your favorite cuz! I was looking for you on the train but we couldn't find you and oh, Kreacher sends his love and I can't _wait_ for the Sorting I just _know_ we'll be in the same House and you promised you'd help me find everything, remember and can I hang out with your friends and remember, you promised your mummy you'd be nice to me and is that your boyfriend, don't you remember your daddy says grades before gits, is he really nice what's his name will you introduce me hi, I'm Sirius, wow, are you a prefect how long have you known Cissy--"

"GET OUT!" Narcissa roared, leaping up.

"Sorry about him," Remus apologized on cue, stepping in and "trying" to lead Sirius out of the compartment. "We were just practicing dueling in our compartment when Peter came in--"

"And he was caught off guard when Pete said you were in here, so I got him with a Babbling Hex," James said proudly. "He _was_ very excited to see you though, says you're his favorite cousin--but I can't remember the counter-jinx."

"_Finite Incantartum,"_ Narcissa's boyfriend said hastily, pointing his wand at Sirius, who persisted in asking questions about every test he had every taken, girl he had ever dated, and poor little Muggle-born he had ever beat up.

"And I don't think it's very nice, really, there's this girl who lives next door to us, and I'm not allowed to talk to her, but sometimes I sneak out and I might marry her just to make Mum mad, but of course Cissy would never do something that stupid because she's really a lot smarter than I am and are you going to marry her because no offense but I just thought you should know her sister's dating a Muggle-born and he's really smart I bet he could kick your butt so that'd be really embarrassing and you might not want to--"

"Ignore him, Lucius," Narcissa said scathingly as he flushed with anger. "Sirius here is just an annoying little pest. He knows when it would be better for him to _leave as soon as possible so he doesn't spend the next few years as a cockroach_." She stood nose-to-nose with him, her voice deadly cold.

The room waited with bated breath.

Sirius burst into tears.

"JAAAAMES!" he wailed, and James pulled him into a somber hug.

"There, there, mate, it's all right."

"Oh, now you've done it," Remus frowned.

"Don't worry, Sirius, I'm sure she didn't mean it. How about we go back to our compartment for now and come back later, once Narcissa and her friends are all caught up from the summer?" James offered.

Sirius sniffled. "All right. Bye, Cissy."

Slowly, they exited the compartment and heard the door slam so suddenly that shards of glass fell to the ground. All four boys, Peter included, burst into laughter, bent double.

"That-- that was--" James choked out.

"Brilliant," Peter gasped.

"She's going to make your life miserable," Remus predicted.

"But it was worth it," Sirius beamed.

"Obviously."

"Pray you don't get in Slytherin now," James advised. "You'll give pour Lucius an ulcer; he won't know whether to take points or not."

"I won't be, I'm nothing like those idiots."

"Well, you'll find out soon enough." Remus pointed out the window, where it was starting to get dark. "We'll be there soon."

(---)

"Firs' years this way," someone called. The boys followed the sound, almost crashing into Peter as he stopped dead.

"Wow," he whispered. Then he shook his head and kept walking. "Sorry, just wasn't expecting…"

Remus squinted at the figure holding the lamp, and he couldn't blame Peter for his surprise. The man had to be--at least--nine feet tall, with incredibly long, bushy hair, swinging a lantern from his fist.

"Cool! How tall are you?" James asked eagerly. Remus sighed. Tact, James, tact. The man chuckled.

"Taller 'n you an' that's all you need to know. Right, you lot all set? M'name's Hagrid, an' I'm the Groundskeeper here at Hogwarts. It's my job to make sure all you firs' years cross the lake without drownin', so four to a boat an' let's get started."

The four boys climbed into a boat, which immediately started sliding across the black lake. A small fleet of boats was soon following Hagrid's, often starting with a gasp or a shriek from unsuspecting occupants. Slowly, an enormous castle came into view, and all four boys leaned forward eagerly for their first glimpse of Hogwarts.

It was incredible. Six towers rose into the sky, of varying heights and sizes, the tallest one looking like a spindly tree and the shortest like a fat stump. Light sparkled from every window, sprawled across the grounds. Remus could just barely make out people moving through the enormous windows perched on the cliff near the lake.

"It's _huge,_" Sirius said excitedly.

"You could wander for days and no one would find you!" James grinned. Remus could see the cogs in his head moving.

"My dad says that things move all the time--stairs, statues, doors. Real easy to get lost in. Not to mention the fact that it's got seven floors…"

"Seven?" Peter asked, awed.

"Plus the towers, and the dungeons," Sirius added. "And it's supposed to be full of hidden passages, too. The other day I snuck out of my house and went to Diagon Alley, and Florean Fortesque was telling me how every student knows one secret about Hogwarts, but no one knows them all."

"Well we'll be the first," James said determinedly, just as the boats bumped against the shore. They disembarked and found themselves in a small sort of cave. Hagrid walked through, ignoring the terrified faces of the kids who darted out of his way, and knocked on a huge oak door. It opened to reveal a stern-looking witch, with square spectacles and dark hair pulled into a bun.

"New students, Professor McGonagall."

"Thank you, Hagrid. I assume there were no problems?"

"None t'all."

"Excellent. Well, follow me."

The crowd followed her hastily, into a small antechamber.

"My name is Professor McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress and Transfiguration teacher," the witch introduced herself. "There are four Hogwarts Houses, which you are about to be sorted into: Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff. It does not matter which House you are in; you will receive the same education, and each House has produced phenomenal witches and wizards."

"But Slytherin's the only one who produces evil ones," Sirius muttered in Remus' ear. "I should know, my whole family's in there." Remus laughed softly, James snickered, Peter giggled, and McGonagall shot all four boys a withering look. They fell silent immediately.

"Once you are sorted, you will join your House table--Slytherin on the far right, Ravenclaw middle right, Hufflepuff middle left, and Gryffindor far left. After the feast, prefects will escort you to your Common Room and dormitory. You will eat, sleep, and attend classes with your House. When you enter your second year, you may join the House Quidditch team, and your behavior or misbehavior--" She eyed Sirius, who tried to look innocent. "--will earn or lose your House points. Wait here until the Sorting begins."

She swept out of the room, and immediately the students started buzzing. Some people speculated about their houses, others wondered how they would be sorted.

"My cousin Bella told me they feed you poison, and the time it takes you to find the antidote dictates what House you're in," Sirius snorted. "Quickest Slytherin, then Ravenclaw, Gryffindor and Hufflepuff."

"And if you don't find the antidote at all?" James asked, amused.

"They put the dead ones back on the train. But then again, Bella never really liked me much. 'Dromeda says they have a different ceremony every year because they don't want first years to know what it is--some sort of hazing thing--but she heard this year was going to be the toughest one in ages. Uncle Alphard told me we just need to put on a hat."

"How anti-climatic," Remus said dryly.

Just then McGonagall reappeared, gesturing for the first years to follow her. They entered the Great Hall to a good deal of murmuring from the older students. A table full of teachers sat on a raised dais, and several of the teachers were scanning the crowd. Remus wondered if they were trying to spot the werewolf.

"Look," Peter whispered, pointing at the ceiling. The other three glanced up interestedly. There didn't appear to _be_ a ceiling; it was covered in black sky, purple clouds, and bright, twinkling stars.

"Cool," James praised, before nearly crashing into McGonagall. The long march had ended.

A three-legged stool sat in front of the High Table, and on it sat a frayed, patched hat.

"Ha, I knew ol' Al wouldn't let me down," Sirius muttered.

Every eye was on the Hat, and suddenly a long tear appeared on the brim. It widened, and the Hat burst into song.

_In olden days when war was born  
__There were four wizards of great power  
__Who at once ceased to cry and mourn  
__Instead they stood above the crowd  
__Devoted to a common dream:  
__To educate the young and pure  
__Surely, a desperate, thankless scheme  
__And yet they are remembered  
__For their unity, their passion  
__I am their legacy, their mouthpiece, so listen  
__(Though I may grow out of fashion):  
__Brave Gryffindor, the noble hero  
__Sought those both good and true  
__Quick Ravenclaw took those whose wit  
__Could match her own--so few!  
__Slytherin the cunning sought those with great ambition  
__A taste for power and skill  
__Kind Hufflepuff taught only those  
__With kindness and strong will  
__Now the dream has flourished  
__Hogwarts still stands strong  
__I will sort you, teach you, unify you  
__And Hogwarts will live on_

The four houses erupted with cheers, and, after getting over their surprise, the first years yelled louder than anyone. Professor McGonagall only cleared her throat once, but the sudden silence was deafening.

"Antony, Thomas," McGonagall called. Nervously, he perched on the stool and waited as the Sorting Hat considered. The school held its breath.

"RAVENCLAW!"

Austin, Marcus was sent to Hufflepuff, Averey, Tyler to Slytherin, Barry, William to Hufflepuff and then:

"Black, Sirius."

Several eyes flickered towards the Slytherin table, where Narcissa Black was eyeing her cousin with a mixture of loathing and expectation. Sirius looked sick. He crawled onto the stool and squeezed his eyes shut, crossing his fingers. After a solid minute of silence, the wide brim of the hat opened.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

"YES!" Sirius bellowed triumphantly. He yanked the hat off, smirked at Narcissa and the Slytherin table in general, and skipped happily to Gryffindor. Students laughed, teachers smiled, and Dumbledore chuckled warmly. Even Professor McGonagall seemed to be biting back a laugh.

"Carroll, Emily."

The Sorting continued, and Remus recognized the redhead from the train--Evans, Lily. She was sorted into Gryffindor like Sirius, whom she was pointedly avoiding. There was a long stream of unfamiliar names, until--

"Lupin, Remus."

Immediately, three different teachers turned to their neighbors and started whispering to each other. Remus blushed, very aware that everyone in the Great Hall was staring at him. His feet seemed to be frozen, but then Dumbledore cleared his throat and all the teachers fell silent. Slowly, Remus approached the stool. The Sorting Hat slipped past his ears, and he jumped as a soft voice spoke.

"_Ah, so it's you… caused Dumbledore quite a bit of trouble, haven't you? People in and out of his office, demanding information on the werewolf."_

_I'm not just a werewolf,_ Remus thought angrily. _You're a bloody hat, shouldn't you be more concerned with what's in my head?_ A tiny little voice--his own, not the Sorting Hat--wondered if maybe the wolf-mind was as important as his own. He tried to shake it off, but there was a certain slyness in the Hat's voice that convinced him it had heard.

"_There's a nice bit of fire in you, I see… a good sharp mind, too, Ravenclaw and Slytherin would appreciate that…"_

Remus' stomach lurched at the thought. Would Sirius and James and Peter still want to be friends with him if he was in Slytherin? Gryffindors were supposed to be loyal… but what if he really belonged in Slytherin, home of the cunning and future Death Eaters? Home of the werewolves, maybe?

"…_but not much drive, I'm afraid. That's quite disappointing."_

_To you, maybe._

The Hat chuckled quietly. _"That's all I needed."_

"GRYFFINDOR!"

A wave of relief swept through him. He was in a House for the noble, true, and good, and he had a friend in his House. A promising start. Remus swept the Hat off and walked as fast as he could to the Gryffindor table. He dropped into a seat on Sirius's right, and the other boy thumped him on the back with a grin.

"You looked scared stiff, mate. What, afraid they'd send you back home? Or were you afraid to deal with our good friends Lucy and Cissy?"

"I was sure _you_ were going to be sick," Remus changed the subject quickly. "The look on your face…"

They made fun of each other until McGonagall called "Pettigrew, Peter." Peter sat on the edge of the stool, trembling. The Sorting Hat took a while to decide, but finally it called "GRYFFINDOR!" and Peter scampered to the seat across from Remus.

"Thank God it's over," he mumbled.

"Sh sh, shut up, it's James' turn," Sirius said urgently.

"Potter, James."

James trotted up to the stool. His feet swung cheekily off the edge, and the Sorting Hat didn't waste time.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

"Yes!" Sirius hissed. James fell into the seat next to Peter, looking quite smug.

"Told you."

"Did it even touch your head? It looked like your hair might have made contact, but I wasn't sure."

James grinned and turned away pointedly, watching the Sorting. The dark-haired boy who had been with Lily on the train--Snape, Severus--was Sorted into Slytherin after perhaps twenty seconds. Sirius sneered in his direction, as Narcissa's boyfriend patted him on the back.

"I don't like him," he decided.

"Which one?" Peter asked curiously, eyeing the prefect.

"Both," Sirius and James answered at the same time.

After about five minutes, "Welcher, Alexander," was sorted into Hufflepuff, and the sorting was over. Older students turned to their plates expectantly, but Dumbledore stood up and cleared his throat.

"I know you are all eager to dive headfirst into our excellent feast, but I'm afraid it must wait. Some announcements, alas, are too important to be drowned by pudding. Firstly, the Forbidden Forest remains forbidden, despite the hopes of our older students. First years, please take note that there is only one forest on the Hogwarts grounds, and not knowing that it was _the_ forest will not get you out of trouble."

"Damn," Sirius muttered.

"In addition, there has been a charming addition to the vegetation of the Hogwarts grounds that ought to be forbidden as well. The Whomping Willow, though an excellent Herbology subject, has a tendency to whomp those who come too near."

Remus couldn't help but scan the Great Hall. Students looked puzzled but unconcerned and one man with a green leaf protruding from the tip of his hat (presumably the Herbology teacher) looked delighted, but several of the teachers weren't happy at all. A few looked worried, while others seemed outright angry. He shrank back from the Head Table.

"On a more mundane note, first years are not allowed their own brooms and Quidditch try-outs will take place next weekend. Mr. Filch would like to remind you all that no magic is permitted in the corridors in between classes, and all students must report to his room sometime in the next week to take note of the list of forbidden objects. That is all--tuck in!"

The plates suddenly filled with food. Exchanging gleeful looks, the boys dug in and didn't pause until the last speck of pudding was gone. After Dumbledore waved the school away, they rolled after Dennis Kenmore, a prefect, to the Gryffindor common room. She chatted the whole way, telling about Hogwarts and how to get around.

"Flutterbird," she said to a portrait of a fat lady in a pink dress, which swung open to reveal a warm, red-themed room lit by a crackling fire.

"Boys dormitory on the left, girls on the right. Your trunks are already brought up. Sleep well--classes start first thing tomorrow morning."

Remus, Sirius, James and Peter were the only new Gryffindor boys, but half a dozen girls swept up the staircase, already chatting like old friends.

The boys trooped up their staircase to find four four-poster beds, their trunks at the foot of each. Remus located his and made a face; it was the one closest to the window, and moonlight streamed onto his pillow. He was positive he would wake up in the middle of the night sometime and freak out, thinking it was the full moon and falling out of bed before realizing that, if he wasn't hairy, everything was fine.

"Hey James, could you switch with me? I don't like the light."

"High maintenance," Sirius teased.

"And you're not? I saw you checking your hair by the reflection in your spoon, you can't fool me."

"I'm _naturally_ perfect," he bragged, jumping--yes, literally jumping--into bed. "Well, g'night James."

"G'night, Sirius."

"G'night Remus."

"G'night, Sirius."

"G'night, Peter."

"G'night, Sirius."

"G'night, Remus."

"G'night, James."

"G'night, Peter."

"G'night James. G'night, Remus."

"G'night, Peter."

"G'night James and Remus and--"

"Shut up, Sirius."

"Yes, James."

Remus smiled to himself as he settled into bed. He had a feeling these boys would not let him get away with meekness and isolation. Somehow, the thought didn't bother him as much as it would have the day before.

And so, one era ended, and another began.


End file.
